Tomima's Blog – Lingerie & Underwear Expert

I am really excited about the swimwear department we’ve added to HerRoom.  Like most women, I hate going bathing suit shopping because suits never look or fit right. The suits I try on either smash my breasts, and/or have no support.  And when a bathing suit claims to have a light pad in the cups for modesty, it’s nothing more than some triangle piece of flimsy fabric that quickly gets balled up and never sits right.

Since we deal with lingerie manufacturers, my buyers were delighted to see that several of the ones we work with are now taking their expertise in bra manufacturing to the swimwear arena.  But, they have also sized the swimsuits the same way they size bras.  A simple idea, but what a difference it makes.

Right now, HerRoom has a great collection of bra-sized swimwear on our site — specifically, Freya and Fantasie swimwear. We found a fabulous F cup model, and made a video fashion show to show you how great the full figure women can look on the beach or by the pool.  Oh, and the swim suits from these two brands go up to an H cup in many of the styles.

Below is our video. Sit back, enjoy, and be surprised by how great swimwear will now look on you.  It’s actually fun to buy a bathing suit!

 

 

Find bathing suits at HerRoom in these departments:
Swimwear

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Posted by Tomima at 9:12am
Tags: bathing suits, fantasie, freya, swimwear
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My buyers returned from NYC last month with arm-fulls of shapewear catalogs.  It seems like everyone is trying to get on the shapewear band wagon.  Understandable since this category is one of the few success stories this year. It all looks pretty much the same, except for one – Annette’s new line called Diva Defined.

I’ve never seen anything like it.  What they’ve done is inserted an internal back belt-like design with hook adjusters so you can adjust how much support you want or need.  And this internal feature is invisible on the outside.

So, here’s what I like about it.  We all know shapewear is not that comfortable to wear all day.  With the Diva Defined, you can put it on a loose setting while driving, or sitting at your desk.  When you need to give a presentation, or want to look svelte in front of your boss, just dash into the ladies room and tighten it up.  It really gives you the flexibility of wearing shapewear all day yet with some relief at the same time.

Right now, there are 5 styles: two panties, a camisole, a biker short and a full slip.  This collection is made by Annette – a shapewear brand that has been around for over 25 years.  So, you know it’s a quality product and has been well thought out and tested.

If you’re a shapewear wearer, I think the Diva Defined Collection is something you should strongly consider.

 

I wrote about another innovation in shapewear earlier this year, Cosabella Smooth Bamboo line.

 

Find Annette lingerie at HerRoom in these departments:
Bras
Shapewear

 

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Posted by Tomima at 1:21pm
Tags: diva defined, shapewear
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No kidding–breast movement can hurt. Along with America’s obesity epidemic, the average size of women’s breasts has been on the increase.  Over the last 15 years, the average bra size has moved from a 34B to a 36C, and some are suggesting we are now approaching 38D as the new average bra size in America.  And, with a pair of D cup size breasts weighing in at between 15 and 23 lbs., breast pain during high impact activity is becoming a bigger problem.

Last year, I reported on Dr. Joanna Scarr’s research out of the U.K.  Basically, her findings were that breasts move in a sideways, figure-8 kind of movement.  And, she discovered that the breasts not only move from side to side, but also in and out from the chest wall.  Similar research has been done in Australia by Deirdre McGhee – a sports physiotherapist and graduate student at the University of Wollongong.

McGhee’s research shows that women’s breasts move in a sinusoidal pattern – basically the same finding as Scurr.  However, McGhee feels that controlling of this breast movement is more closely tied to how the bra straps are constructed rather than the bra cup construction.  As a result, her team is working on the world’s first "smart bra."  It will use intelligent materials and electronic textiles to sense breast motion and tighten or loosen appropriate parts of the bra to reduce breast bounce.

All of this is very hush-hush and is in the process of being protected with patents.  Their goal is to create a paradigm shift similar to the shift running shoes experienced in the 1970′s.  The research is being coordinated with British retailer Marks & Spencer.

I for one am looking forward to seeing what turns up from all this work.  As long as it doesn’t need to be plugged in and gets great mileage, I’m ready to try it.

 

You can see how various sports bras perform in HerRoom’s Bounce Test videos.
Read my original interview with Dr. Scarr about breast movement during exercise.

 

Find sports bras at HerRoom in these departments:
Sport Underwear

 

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Posted by Tomima at 11:56am
Tags: bounce videos, breast bounce, breast movement, breast pain, Sports Bras
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